Childhood Memories Revisited (Movie Mania): Anastasia

Recently I’ve been digging through my old box full of video cassettes. Looking at my beloved Disney movies and fairytale films I decided to start a new series of posts here on my blog. I hope you enjoy it =)

The first one of my childhood movies I will review is Anastasia, a wonderful Don Bluth movie from 1997. The for two Oscars nominated film tells the tale of the last surviving daughter of the Russian Tsar. Of course the didn’t stick exactly to the history but it is nevertheless a lovely and creative tale.

The Plot:

When revolution happens in Russia the little Anastasia has to flee. During their escape she gets separated from her grandmother. Due to her fall on her head she loses all memory and thus grows up in an orphanage. As soon as she (now called Anya) comes of age she heads for St. Petersburg to find out about her past. In the mean time two fraudsters Dimitri and Vladimir are casting women to find an Anastasia. Her grandmother never gave up on her and promised a huge reward to anyone who brings her granddaughter back. Somehow Anya runs into the two men and they pick her as actress. What nobody knows is that she is the real one. In some land beyond death Rasputin comes back to life. He sold his soul to the devil and initiated the revolution in which almost the entire Tsar family was killed. He finds out that Anastasia is alive and tries several times to kill her. After overcoming several difficulties they reach her grandmother in Paris and Anastasia remembers about her past. She finally kills Rasputin and falls in love with Dimitri.

The Rating:

I absolutely loved this film as a kid. The design and drawing of this film is beautiful. What I liked to much about it is the very different setting closer to reality. Most of the other movies are taking place in some medieval time but this one wasn’t to far away. Furthermore, it’s not all that much princess-y like the other girls in such films. It’s not all just glitter and glamour. But I guess what I appreciated most is that Anastasia fights herself and doesn’t just wait for some prince to appear and rescue her. She can stand up for herself and isn’t just a damsel in distress. On top of that she decides against a life as princess with all the opulence. So for me the film communicated a rather different role model than most of the other movies. However, the music is absolutely gorgeous aswell. No wonder the movie was nominated for two music related Oscars. I can still song every one of them, ever after 15 years. When I watched the film again I still loved like I did in my childhood days. To everyone out there who hasn’t seen it yet: Go ahead, watch it! And for everyone who already knows it: I hope you like it just as much as I do. =)